No effect of enoxaparin on outcome of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial

2003 ◽  
Vol 99 (6) ◽  
pp. 953-959 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jari Siironen ◽  
Seppo Juvela ◽  
Joona Varis ◽  
Matti Porras ◽  
Kristiina Poussa ◽  
...  

Object. From the moment an intracranial aneurysm ruptures, cerebral blood flow is impaired, and this impairment mainly determines the outcome in patients who survive after the initial bleeding. The exact mechanism of impairment is unknown, but activation of coagulation and fibrinolysis correlate with clinical condition and outcome after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). The purpose of this study was to determine whether enoxaparin, a low-molecular-weight heparin, which is a well-known anticoagulating agent, has any effect on the outcome of aneurysmal SAH postoperatively. Methods. In this randomized, double-blind, single-center clinical trial, 170 patients (85 per group) with aneurysmal SAH were randomly assigned to receive either enoxaparin (40 mg subcutaneously once daily) or a placebo, starting within 24 hours after occlusion of the aneurysm and continuing for 10 days. Analysis was done on an intention-to-treat basis. Outcome was assessed at 3 months on both the Glasgow Outcome and modified Rankin Scales. Patients were eligible for the study if surgery was performed within 48 hours post-SAH, and no intracerebral hemorrhage was larger than 20 mm in diameter on the first postoperative computerized tomography scan. At 3 months, there were no significant differences in outcome by treatment group. Of the 170 patients, 11 (6%) died, and only 95 (56%) had a good outcome. Principal causes of unfavorable outcome were poor initial condition, delayed cerebral ischemia, and surgical complications. There were four patients with additional intracranial bleeding in the group receiving enoxaparin. The bleeding was not necessarily associated with the treatment itself, nor did it require treatment, and there were no such patients in the placebo group. Conclusions. Enoxaparin seemed to have no effect on the outcome of aneurysmal SAH in patients who had already received routine nimodipine and who had received triple-H therapy when needed. Routine use of low-molecular-weight heparin should be avoided during the early postoperative period in patients with SAH, because this agent seems to increase intracranial bleeding complications slightly, with no beneficial effect on neurological outcome.

2005 ◽  
Vol 2 (5) ◽  
pp. 612-613 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoon-Hee Cha ◽  
John H. Chi ◽  
Nicholas M. Barbaro

✓ Spinal subdural hematomas (SDHs) are a rare cause of cord compression and typically occur in the setting of spinal instrumentation or coagulopathy. The authors report the first case of a spontaneous spinal SDH occurring in conjunction with low-molecular-weight heparin use in a patient with a history of spinal radiotherapy.


1997 ◽  
Vol 86 (3) ◽  
pp. 467-474 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Clarke Haley ◽  
Neal F. Kassell ◽  
Carolyn Apperson-Hansen ◽  
Marie H. Maile ◽  
Wayne M. Alves ◽  
...  

✓ To test the safety and efficacy of tirilazad mesylate, a nonglucocorticoid 21-aminosteroid, in improving the outcome of patients with aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), 902 patients were enrolled in a prospective randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled trial at 54 North American neurosurgical centers. Five patients were excluded prior to receiving any study drug. Of 897 patients who received at least one dose of study medication, 300 received a placebo containing a citrate vehicle, 298 received 2 mg/kg per day tirilazad, and 299 received 6 mg/kg per day tirilazad, all administered intravenously beginning within 48 hours of the SAH and continuing through 10 days posthemorrhage. All patients were also treated with orally administered nimodipine. At 3 months post-SAH, there were no significant differences (p < 0.025) among the groups with regard to mortality rate, favorable outcome on the Glasgow Outcome Scale, or employment status. During the first 14 days after the SAH, there were no significant differences among the groups in the incidence or severity of clinically symptomatic or angiographically identifiable cerebral vasospasm. Mortality data stratified by gender and neurological grade on admission (assessed according to a modified World Federation of Neurological Surgeons scale) demonstrated that the men with Grades IV to V had a 33% mortality rate in the vehicle group, 52% in the 2 mg/kg per day tirilazad group (p = 0.29), and 5% in the 6 mg/kg per day tirilazad group (p = 0.03). Tirilazad was well tolerated at both dose levels. Tirilazad mesylate at dosage levels of up to 6 mg/kg per day for 8 to 10 days following SAH did not improve the overall outcome in patients with aneurysmal SAH in this trial. The differences in the efficacy of tirilazad in this trial and a previously reported trial in Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, in which dosage levels of tirilazad of 6 mg/kg per day reduced mortality rates and increased good recovery, may be a result of differences in admission characteristics of the patients and/or differences in management protocols, including the use of anticonvulsant medications.


1988 ◽  
Vol 69 (5) ◽  
pp. 683-686 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juha Öhman ◽  
Olli Heiskanen

✓ The effect of intravenous nimodipine on the incidence of mortality and delayed ischemic neurological deficits of patients after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and surgery was studied in a prospective double-blind placebo-controlled trial. Upon admission, all of the patients were in Grades I to III according to the classification of Hunt and Hess. Of the 213 patients enrolled in the study, 58 underwent early surgery (within 72 hours after the bleed: Days 0 to 3), 69 were operated on subacutely (between Days 4 and 7), and 74 had late surgery (on Day 8 or later). Eleven patients died before surgery was undertaken and one was not scheduled for operation. Administration of the drug was started immediately after the radiological diagnosis of a ruptured aneurysm had been made. The dose of nimodipine or matching placebo was 0.5 µg/kg/min via continuous intravenous infusion for 7 to 10 days after the SAH and, if the patient was operated on late, for 2 to 3 days after the operation as well. After intravenous treatment, oral administration of nimodipine or placebo was continued for up to 21 days after SAH in a dose of 60 mg every 4 hours. Nimodipine treatment was associated with a significant decrease in mortality rate (p = 0.03) in the early and subacute surgery groups. In the total series the number of deaths due to delayed ischemic deterioration was significantly lower in the nimodipine group than in the placebo group (p = 0.01).


1988 ◽  
Vol 68 (3) ◽  
pp. 393-400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eugene S. Flamm ◽  
Harold P. Adams ◽  
David W. Beck ◽  
Richard S. Pinto ◽  
John R. Marler ◽  
...  

✓ A dose-escalation study of the calcium ion entry blocking drug nicardipine was performed using large dose infusions in 67 patients with recent aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). A safe, potentially therapeutic dose of the drug was determined. Patients admitted within 7 days of SAH from a documented cerebral aneurysm were entered into the study if no spasm was present on the initial angiogram. Nicardipine was administered as a continuous intravenous infusion throughout the 14-day period after SAH, regardless of the timing of surgery. To determine the safest possible dose, nicardipine was administered at seven dose levels from 0.01 to 0.15 mg/kg/hr. The total daily doses ranged from 27.7 mg to 375.0 mg. A follow-up angiogram was carried out on all 67 patients 7 to 10 days after SAH. Computerized tomography and neurological examinations were used to determine the presence of cerebral infarction. No major adverse effects, unexpected reactions, or permanent sequelae could be attributed to nicardipine. A decline in blood pressure was noted following administration of the drug. This occurred more frequently among patients given the largest dose but did not produce clinical problems or require discontinuation of the drug. Favorable outcomes were noted in 52 patients (78%). Vasospasm was found by arteriography in 31 patients (46%). A dose-related trend was noted: only eight (24%) of 33 patients treated at the highest dose level (approximately 10 mg/hr) developed arteriographic evidence of vasospasm. Symptomatic vasospasm was diagnosed in only two (6%) of 33 patients treated with this dose. Of the 34 patients receiving the lower dose levels, angiographic spasm was observed in 68% and symptomatic vasospasm in 27%. No deaths due to vasospasm occurred. Nicardipine appears to prevent both vasospasm and cerebral ischemia after SAH. A multicenter randomized double-blind trial to test this hypothesis is planned.


1996 ◽  
Vol 84 (2) ◽  
pp. 221-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neal F. Kassell ◽  
E. Clarke Haley ◽  
Carolyn Apperson-Hansen ◽  
Wayne M. Alves ◽  
_ _

✓ Tirilazad mesylate, a nonglucocorticoid 21-aminosteroid, has been shown in experimental models to reduce vasospasm following subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) and to reduce infarct size from focal cerebral ischemia. To test whether treatment with tirilazad would reduce ischemic symptoms from vasospasm and improve overall outcome in patients with ruptured aneurysms, a prospective randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled trial was conducted at 41 neurosurgical centers in Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. One thousand twenty-three patients were randomly assigned to receive 0.6, 2, or 6 mg/kg per day of intravenously administered tirilazad or a placebo containing the citrate vehicle. All patients were also treated with intravenously administered nimodipine. Patients receiving 6 mg/kg per day of tirilazad had reduced mortality (p = 0.01) and a greater frequency of good recovery on the Glasgow Outcome Scale 3 months after SAH (p = 0.01) than similar patients treated with vehicle. There was a reduction in symptomatic vasospasm in the group that received 6 mg/kg per day tirilazad; however, the difference was not statistically significant (p = 0.048). The benefits of treatment with tirilazad were predominantly shown in men rather than in women. There were no material differences between the outcomes in the groups treated with 0.6 and 2 mg/kg tirilazad per day and the group treated with vehicle. Tirilazad was well tolerated at all three dose levels. These observations suggest that tirilazad mesylate, at a dosage of 6 mg/kg per day, is safe and improves overall outcome in patients (especially in men) who have experienced an aneurysmal SAH.


2018 ◽  
Vol 234 (4) ◽  
pp. 4191-4199
Author(s):  
Ali Taghizadeh Kermani ◽  
Sare Hosseini ◽  
Azar Fanipakdel ◽  
Mona Joudi Mashhad ◽  
Kambiz Akhavan Rezayat ◽  
...  

2004 ◽  
Vol 101 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Reilly ◽  
Chris Amidei ◽  
Jocelyn Tolentino ◽  
Babak S. Jahromi ◽  
R. Loch Macdonald

Object. This study was conducted for two purposes. The first was to determine whether a combination of measurements of subarachnoid clot volume, clearance rate, and density could improve prediction of which patients experience vasospasm. The second was to determine if each of these three measures could be used independently to predict vasospasm. Methods. Digital files of the cranial computerized tomography (CT) scans obtained in 75 consecutive patients admitted within 24 hours of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) were analyzed in a blinded fashion by an observer who used quantitative imaging software to measure the volume of SAH and its density. Clot clearance rates were measured by quantifying SAH volume on subsequent CT scans. Vasospasm was defined as new onset of a focal neurological deficit or altered consciousness 5 to 12 days after SAH in the absence of other causes of deterioration, diagnosed with the aid of or exclusively by confirmatory transcranial Doppler ultrasonography and/or cerebral angiography. Univariate analysis showed that vasospasm was significantly associated with the SAH grade as classified on the Fisher scale, the initial clot volume, initial clot density, and percentage of clot cleared per day (p < 0.05). In multivariate analysis, initial clot volume and percentage of clot cleared per day were significant predictors of vasospasm (p < 0.05), whereas Fisher grade and initial clot density were not. Conclusions. Quantitative analysis of subarachnoid clot shows that vasospasm is best predicted by initial subarachnoid clot volume and the percentage of clot cleared per day.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document